1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to the field of information handling system power subsystems, and more particularly to a system and method for adjusting information handling system over current protection.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
Many of the components used to process information in an information handling system operate on direct current (DC). To power DC components, information handling systems typically have an AC-to-DC power adapter that converts alternating current (AC) provided from an external source, such as a wall socket, into direct current. Desktop or tower information handling systems typically integrate the AC-to-DC adapter into the system housing. Integrated AC-to-DC adapters are generally designed to meet the power needs of the information handling system based upon the expected amount of power that the system will draw. Typically, a number of safeguards, such as over current protection circuits, are disposed in the power subsystem to ensure that the information handling systems will not draw more power than the adapter is designed to provide.
Portable information handling systems also have components that run on DC power, however, portable information handling systems typically do not integrate an AC-to-DC adapter into their housings. Instead, portable information handling systems usually have an external AC-to-DC power adapter that is separate from the system housing. Using an external power adapter improves system portability by eliminating the external power source from the system housing when the system operates on internal battery power. Portable information handling system AC-to-DC adapters have a plug that inserts into AC electrical sockets to accept external power and a second plug that inserts into a DC socket of the information handling system housing to provide DC power to the information handling system. Portable information handling system AC-to-DC adapters provide a range of power outputs that depend upon the power consumption of the system supported by the adapter. For instance, typical AC-to-DC adapter power outputs vary from less than 60 Watts to greater than 240 Watts.
One difficulty with the use of an AC-to-DC adapter that is separate from an information handling system housing is that an end user may attempt to power a portable information handling system with an inappropriate adapter. If an adapter's power output is less than the power required for the information handling system, the information handling system will likely run but have degraded performance. If an adapter's output is greater than the power required for the information handling system, a danger exists that an over current condition might occur, causing damage to the information handling system or injury to an end user. To avoid the use of an incompatible adapter and information handling system, a variety of different adapter plug configurations are used for adapters of different power outputs. For example, an adapter that outputs greater than 240 Watts of power has a plug that will not fit into an information handling system that is not configured to accept that much power. Although this prevents the use of incompatible adapters and information handling systems, it also promotes the use of a wide array of adapter plugs that increase the cost of adapters and tend to confuse end users.